Nigeria’s Interior Minister, Dr Olubunmi Tunji-Ojo, says the government has “moved from plans to results” as he unveiled the ministry’s two-year performance report at the 2025 Mid-Tenure Sectorial Retreat.
Speaking in Abuja on Thursday, Tunji-Ojo highlighted reforms in immigration, correctional services, and national identity management while acknowledging ongoing challenges.
“We are proud of the successes recorded around passport and visa reforms, the new e-CERPAC system, and the optimization of the fire service,” he said, adding that the creation of Mining Marshals had “prevented losses in billions of naira to illegal operators.”
On Immigration Reforms
Nigeria’s troubled passport system has long been a source of public frustration. The minister said reforms had reduced bottlenecks, though he did not provide exact figures.
Official data show that more than two million Nigerians applied for passports in 2024, with delays triggering protests across major cities.
The new visa framework and e-CERPAC, designed to streamline expatriate documentation, are expected to “close loopholes and boost transparency,” Tunji-Ojo said.
On Correctional System
Tunji-Ojo also pointed to efforts to decongest prisons, noting that Nigeria’s correctional centers currently hold over 77,000 inmates, 70 percent of them awaiting trial, according to government statistics.
“We are designing new frameworks for non-custodial measures,” he said, arguing that the reforms would reduce overcrowding and improve rehabilitation outcomes.
On Security and Identity
On security, the minister credited the establishment of Mining Marshals for curbing illegal operations in resource-rich states.
In their first year (ending March 2025), Nigeria’s Mining Marshals made 327 arrests of illegal miners, recovered 98 mining sites, identified 457 illegal sites, and helped boost the sector’s revenue from N6 billion to N38 billion, with plans to expand operations across the country.
However, security analysts stand that illegal mining costs Nigeria an estimated $9 billion annually.
On national identity, Tunji-Ojo said the ministry had expanded coverage of the National Identity Management Commission (NIMC), with over 107 million Nigerians now enrolled in the national database.
Policy Backing
Hadiza Bala Usman, Special Adviser to the President on Policy Coordination, who attended the retreat, praised the ministry’s reforms as “a demonstration of renewed hope in practice.”
The Minister, Tunji-Ojo concluded by stressing that the ministry has set “new targets and new heights for ourselves towards the development of our great country.”
Talking Points
The Interior Minister’s mid-tenure review underscores reforms in passports, correctional services, mining security, and national identity management, yet many of the claims lack measurable benchmarks or independent verification.
While he hailed passport reforms, Nigerians still face steep fee hikes, delays, and bottlenecks; prison decongestion remains limited with over 70 percent of inmates still awaiting trial; and Mining Marshals, though credited with preventing losses, have not published clear seizure or conviction data despite illegal mining draining an estimated $9 billion annually.
Even the reported 107 million enrollees in the national identity database raise concerns about rural inclusion and data security.
Without transparent figures, civil society audits, or tangible improvements in everyday citizen experience, the ministry’s achievements risk sounding more aspirational than demonstrable, suggesting that “renewed hope” remains more rhetoric than reality.
